International conferenceHydrology of the Mediterranean and Semi-Arid Regions April 1-4, 2003, Montpellier - France Thursday 6 March 2003, by
Web Team

The international Conference ’Hydrology of the Mediterranean and Semi-Arid Regions’ aims at taking stock of hydrological research conducted in these different fields.

The Mediterranean and semi-arid regions are characterised by unevenly distributed water resources, which constitutes sometimes a limitation for development and, in some places, a real political issue. All over the world, the hydrological variability of these regions under mediterranean or semi-arid climates, is due to a combination of heavy rainfall -irregularly distributed in time and space, heterogeneous land topography and high anthropogenic pressure. Owing to the prevailing conditions, planning and water resources using and management for : both traditional and irrigated farming, human consumption, hydroelectric production, protection against droughts and floods in rural and urban areas, erosion, etc ...are made difficult. These difficulties clearly point out the real need to deepen our knowledge about the hydrological regimes in Mediterranean and Semi-Arid regions and particularly (i) their spatial and temporal variability, (ii) the surface and groundwater transfer mechanisms over river basins, (iii) the extreme events, (iv) the surface and groundwater resources and their integrated management.

The international Conference ’Hydrology of the Mediterranean and Semi-Arid Regions’ aims at taking stock of hydrological research conducted in these different fields. Furthermore, this Conference is hoped to be a place for exchanging and comparing research priorities, methods, data, knowledge and results, acquired by scientific teams which, around the world, are working for a better understanding of the hydrological phenomenoms observed under these Mediterranean and Semi-Arid climates.